August 8, 2006

[Piracy] Titan Quest Publisher On Piracy

Michael Fitch is one of the Creative Managers over at THQ, and he wrote a fascinating post over at the forums on QuarterToThree.com about the support headaches generated by the pirated copy of "Titan Quest."

I don't like copy protection and all, but really, complaining about games that are buggy due to a bad hack by the pirates? That's like complaining that the electronic keypad lock you smashed with a crowbar let you through the door, but electrocuted you, so people shouldn't put locks on their doors.

I experienced no issues with the game upon purchase; however, the editor often locked my computer to the extent that a reboot was necessary. The latest patch fixed that problem, and since that patch, I've encountered absolutely zero issues. Some of my hardware isn't exactly common in system configurations either.

Aside from 0 A.D. developed by Wildfire Games for which I manage QA, I've never actually tested PC titles as rigorously as I've tested PS2 and PSP titles for SCEA and SOE. I can certainly understand the desire for hardware standardization. One of the ways I'm going to attempt to simulate a clean-room environment similar to quality assurance for console games is by ensuring that our testers use PC configurations similar to, if not precisely modelled after, the target minimum and recommended system specifications. Unfortunately, despite the quality of our product and the numerous publishers that have knocked on our door that we've also turned down, the team collectively decided to release 0 A.D. as freeware; therefore, we have not yet implemented a revenue model and thus will encounter financial difficulty in setting up a professional, virtually managed, and distributed QA department. I've played with the idea of establishing a quality assurance services company to secure funding for the equipment, but operating two businesses would require a major time commitment on my part. Michael, do you have any ideas that could work in our situation?

About Me

Currently Sr. Software Engineer in Test at Netflix. Formerly Sr. Quality Engineer on Firefly at Amazon, QA Manager at Ritual Entertainment, Software Test Lead at Microsoft Game Studios, Director of IT for Meeting Professionals International.

Opinions expressed are my own and do not necessarily represent those of any current, former, or future employer.